Where the estate is opened.
Only if the statute's conditions are met. Read the section below.
See the tax section for the exemption or the repeal.
Living trust or probate
A revocable living trust holds assets you title in the trustee's name. You can serve as trustee while you are able.
At death, the successor trustee handles those assets. Property you leave in your own name can still go through the probate court. A pour-over will sends leftover assets into the trust, and those leftover assets may pass through probate first.
The probate path
In Vermont, the estate is opened in the Probate Division of the Superior Court.
Title 14 places small estates and executor accounts in the Probate Division of the Superior Court. A small estate is opened by petition under section 1901. If there is a will, it is admitted and letters of administration are issued. If there is no will, letters of administration are issued. Letters issued in a small estate are effective for one year unless the court extends them. For other estates, the executor or administrator renders an account until the estate is settled, and may close by an affidavit of administration not less than six months and not more than one year after appointment unless the court extends that time.
Source: 14 V.S.A. sec. 1902
Fees
In Vermont, probate compensation is a statutory commission.
Section 1065 says an executor or administrator shall be allowed necessary expenses in the care, management, and settlement of the estate and reasonable fees for services. If the will makes some other provision for compensation, that is full satisfaction unless the executor renounces it by a written instrument filed in the Probate Division, or unless the court orders otherwise. No percentage is stated.
Source: 14 V.S.A. sec. 1065
Small estate
Vermont's small-estate figure on this page is $45,000 when the statute's conditions are met.
Section 1901 is a court small-estate opening, not a collection-by-affidavit transfer. It applies when the estate has a fair market value of not more than $45,000.00 and consists entirely of personal property, except that it may include a time-share estate as defined by 32 V.S.A. section 3619(a). The filing includes a petition, a list of interested persons, the filing fee, an original death certificate, an inventory, an affidavit of paid and outstanding funeral expenses and other known or reasonably ascertainable debts, a bond without surety in the amount of the fair market value, and the will if any. An interested party who does not consent in writing gets notice and 14 days to object. There is no separate collection-affidavit dollar limit on the page. The $45,000.00 figure is the cap for this small-estate proceeding.
Source: 14 V.S.A. sec. 1901
Estate or inheritance tax
Vermont levies an estate tax.
The Vermont Department of Taxes states that in 2026 the Legislature increased the estate tax filing threshold to $5 million to match the payment threshold, effective June 18, 2026. Form EST-191 must be filed if the person has an interest in Vermont property and either the federal gross estate plus federal adjusted taxable gifts made within two years of death is worth more than $5 million, or a federal Form 706 is required. The page says the estate tax is assessed only on the gross estate value exceeding $5 million plus taxable gifts made within two years of death.
Source: Estate Tax, Vermont Department of Taxes
Questions
The answers use the same statute and court pages as the sections above.
Does a living trust avoid probate in Vermont?
A revocable living trust holds the assets you title in the trustee's name. The successor trustee handles those assets. Property still titled in your own name can be a probate matter. A pour-over will can send leftover assets into the trust, and those leftover assets may still pass through probate first.
What is the small-estate procedure in Vermont?
Section 1901 is a court small-estate opening, not a collection-by-affidavit transfer. It applies when the estate has a fair market value of not more than $45,000.00 and consists entirely of personal property, except that it may include a time-share estate as defined by 32 V.S.A. section 3619(a). The filing includes a petition, a list of interested persons, the filing fee, an original death certificate, an inventory, an affidavit of paid and outstanding funeral expenses and other known or reasonably ascertainable debts, a bond without surety in the amount of the fair market value, and the will if any. An interested party who does not consent in writing gets notice and 14 days to object. There is no separate collection-affidavit dollar limit on the page. The $45,000.00 figure is the cap for this small-estate proceeding.
How are probate fees set in Vermont?
Section 1065 says an executor or administrator shall be allowed necessary expenses in the care, management, and settlement of the estate and reasonable fees for services. If the will makes some other provision for compensation, that is full satisfaction unless the executor renounces it by a written instrument filed in the Probate Division, or unless the court orders otherwise. No percentage is stated.
Does Vermont tax an estate or an inheritance?
The Vermont Department of Taxes states that in 2026 the Legislature increased the estate tax filing threshold to $5 million to match the payment threshold, effective June 18, 2026. Form EST-191 must be filed if the person has an interest in Vermont property and either the federal gross estate plus federal adjusted taxable gifts made within two years of death is worth more than $5 million, or a federal Form 706 is required. The page says the estate tax is assessed only on the gross estate value exceeding $5 million plus taxable gifts made within two years of death.
Sources
These are the statute and court pages used above.